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The Blue Ridge Parkway is a National Parkway and All-American Road noted for its scenic beauty. It runs for 469 miles through the famous Blue Ridge Mountains, a part of the Appalachian Mountains. It is the longest, narrowest National Park in the world.
Construction of the parkway took over fifty-two years to complete, the last stretch (the Linn Cove Viaduct) was laid around Grandfather Mountain in 1987. Twenty-seven tunnels were constructed through the rock -- one in Virginia and 26 in North Carolina. The highest point on the parkway is 6047 feet above sea level on Richland Balsam Mountain at Milepost 431. The parkway is carried across streams, railways ravines and cross roads by 168 bridges and six viaducts.
The parkway runs from the southern terminus of Shenandoah National Park's Skyline Drive in Virginia at Rockfish Gap to U.S. 441 at Oconaluftee in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park near Cherokee, North Carolina. There is no fee for using the parkway, however commercial vehicles are prohibited without approval from the Park Service Headquarters. The roadway is not maintained in the winter, and sections which pass over especially high elevations and through tunnels are often impassable and therefore closed from late fall through early spring. Weather is extremely variable in the mountains, so conditions and closures often change rapidly.
The parkway uses short side roads to connect to other highways, and there are no direct interchanges with interstate highways, making it possible to enjoy wildlife and other scenery without stopping for cross-traffic. Mileposts along the parkway start at zero at the northeast end in Virginia and count to 469 at the southern end in North Carolina. The mileposts can be found on the west side of the road.
Wildflowers dominate the parkway in the spring, including rhododendrons and dogwoods, moving from valleys to mountains as the cold weather retreats. Smaller annuals and perennials such as the daisy and aster flower through the summer. Brilliant autumn foliage occurs later in September on the mountaintops, descending down to the valleys by later in October. Often in early to middle October and middle to late April, all three seasons can be seen simply by looking down from the cold and windy parkway to the green and warm valleys below. October is especially dramatic, as the colored leaves stand out boldly and occur mostly at the same time, unlike the flowers.
Major trees include oak, hickory, and tulip tree at lower elevations and buckeye and ash in the middle, turning into conifers such as fir and spruce at the highest elevations on the parkway. Trees near ridges, peaks, and passes (often called gaps or notches) are often distorted and even contorted by the wind, and persistent rime ice deposited by passing clouds in the winter.
Crestwood Resort is located on the border of Moses H Cone Memorial Park near parkway milepost 295.
Parkway Highlights Near Crestwood:
- Milepost 272 -- E. B. Jeffress Park has a self-guided trail to the Cascades. Another trail goes to the old cabin and church.
- Milepost 285.1 -- Daniel Boone's Trace, which Boone blazed to the West, crosses near here.
- Milepost 292 to 295 -- Moses H. Cone Memorial Park has hiking and horse trails. Flat top Manor houses the Parkway Craft Center. Fishing.
- Milepost 295.1 to 298 -- Julian Price Memorial Park, the former retreat of an insurance executive, offers a variety of short trails and a lake.
- Milepost 304.4 -- Linn Cove Viaduct, a design and engineering marvel, skirts the side of Grandfather Mountain. Visitor center and trails.
- Milepost 308.3 -- Flat Rock is worth the walk for the superb view of Grandfather Mountain and Linville Valley.
- Milepost 316.3 -- Linville Falls roars through a dramatic rugged gorge. Trails to overlooks.
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